Pile fabric



A. WRIGHT PILE FABRIC June 4, 1940.

Filed April 22, 1937 5 Patented June 4, 1940 UNITED STATES,` PATENT y OFFICE .Alfred Wright, `Philadelphia,Pa., assigner to `J. ,Harris Warthman, trustee IApplication April 22, 1937, Serial No. 138,447

4 Claims.

" formed therein or over the background portions,

atleast, of Afigured fabrics, which gives the fabric a general uniformly `sleek appearance.

The object of the present invention is to dis turb the normally uniform sleek appearance of I5 the pile face of the fabric, `byintroducing therein an effect'which somewhat resembles ripples on a normally smooth surface of a quiescent body of liquid produced by localized agitation, which causes the ripples to form in substantially par- 20 allel and angularly intersecting irregular lines,

whichproduces a shimmering effect as the ripples catch and reflect rays `of light.

Fabrics made in accordance with the principles of the present invention, with materials having f a certain amount of sheen, depict a shimmering ripple effect similar to that above noted.

In the accompanying drawing: Fig. 1 diagrammatically illustrates a swatch of figured fabric having a `ripple background pro- 3u duced in accordance with the principles of the i present invention;

Fig. 2 illustrates an all-over ripple effect; Fig. 3 diagrammatically illustrates one step in theproduction of the ripple effect; yand 5 Fig. 4 `illustrates a second step in the production `of the ripple effect.

As far as the present invention is concerned, it `matters not whether the fabric bewoven single or double, `or what the construction of the `base 40 fabric I may be, or how the pile-forming threads or filaments 2 are tied into the base fabric I.

Normally pile fabrics of the type involved in the present case, after being woven, are subjected to a finishing process which may include 45 piece-dyeing, etc. but which in anyevent involves 55 spends, Ito some ``ext'entlat least, 1 on `thejmaterials of whichthe pile threads 2 are composed. For example, pile threads composed ofyarn made "up of continuous 'lamenta rsuch as natural or artificial silk, have a tendency to be stiffer than `threadscornposed of cotton or silk (natural or 5 artificial) `bers or filaments of various lengths spun or vtwisted together to produce the pileforming threads. v

Spun `fiber threads have a softer texture than continuous filaments threads. Consequently, pile l0 threads `2 when formed of continuous filament yarn will `inherently rise to a greater extent or greater angle from the plane of the base fabric I, after the wet brushing and subsequent drying, than will the threads when composed of the l spun yarn.

`As a result of the yabove noted difference in angle the stiiferpilethreads will stand practically perpendicular to theplane of the `base fabric I,

which lwill lpresentthe cut ends lof the stiff la- `ments toview, whilethe'si'desof the softer threads will be presented toview. `Thus,in the one case, looking atthe ends of -the threads gives a relativelydull effect whilelooking at the sides of the softer threads, particularly when suchthreads are `composed of material having a sheen, gives `a bright lustrous effect, as a result of the sides of *the `softer *threads reflecting flight rays while `threads,the'background'willhave Aa uniform sleek, bright, lustrousV appearance while the gure `35 stands out prominently in dull contrast thereto,

even in cases Where .the color shade is alike in both instances.

In fabrics having a pilefacemade of soft spun fibrous yarns throughout, the sleekness is uni- 140 form :throughout .the aentlre area of the fabric. In this case, a design may be produced by using aisoft spun yarn of one `kindfor a figure, for example cotton, anda `softspun yarn of a different kind, for example silk, for the background, which, during subsequent piece-dyeing, will take `the dye to different degrees and present a pattern in a different shade but of the same color as the'background of said figure.

The present invention concerns the disturbance of the above noted general uniform sleekness vof the fabric,` primarily by breaking up the solid light-reflectingareasiof thepile 'face of the `fabric. This is accomplished by'raising pile threads `ha'phazardly, in irregular `lines `whicli extend in 55 one general direction transversely of the fabric but which lie at slight angles to each other in some places, substantially parallel to each other in other places, and here and there intersect each other, which collectively produce a general ripple effect, by presenting the light-absorbing ends of the pile threads at those places where the pile threads are raised and the side light-reflecting surfaces of the pile threads which are left lying in the normal lposition of the napwhere the pile threads are not raised. f V

In a fabric having the pile face composed throughout of spun fibers the ripple effect will bev an all-over affair, whereas in a fabric having .a design formed of continuous filament threads the design will stand out prominently while the ripple effect will extend throughout the background areas. f

Fig. l illustrates a fabric stier continuous lament pile threads depict a design 3 on a background 4 composed of spun yarn, wherein certain of thepreviously laid pile threads 2 have been raisedhaphazardly to expose the light-absorbing ends of the spun threads, as illustrated at 5, while the light-reflecting sides of the non-raised threads, shown at 6, are interspersed throughout the whole of the pile surface of the background 4 and reflect the light rays in the form of the shimmering ripple effect above noted.

In Fig. 2, the pile face of the fabric is shown as being composed exclusively of spun yarn with the light-absorbing ends of the raised pile threads 2 showing at the places designated 5 and the lightreiiecting sides of the non-raised threads 2 showing at the places designated 5.

Fig. 3 shows the first step of producing the nish desired, wherein the base fabric I is moving in the direction of the arrow a and the pile threads 2 are being brushed all in one direction by a revolving bristle brush 'I rotating in the direction of the arrow b, that is, in the direction of movement of the fabric I, and by which the pile threads 2 are laid all in one direction, as illustrated at 2a. This is the normal step of laying the nap in fabrics as produced heretofore.

Fig. 4 illustrates the fabric moving in the direction ofl the arrows a1 and a2 over and around a relatively acute edge 8 of a blade 9, with a bristle brush l0 spaced from said edge and revolving in the direction of the arrow b1, that is, a direction opposite to the direction of movement of the fabric.

The brush lll is set'in such relation t0 the fabric that the previously laid threads 2a can pass between the periphery of thebrush and the blade edge 8 without being engaged by the brush. However, when the fabric is bent sharply in passing around the edge 8, the wet threads 2a which have been previously brushed and laid flatlyon the base'fabric l and which, due to their wet condition have stuck to each other and to the base fabric, pull loose in groups at their outer or free ends, here and there across the fabric, as the fabric passes around the sharp edge 8. These threads in loosening, spring upwardly and are caught at their free ends by the reversely moving brush l0 which stands the threads up more or less erectly sothat the endsy of the loosened. threads are presented to view amongst the threads which remain flat. This spontaneous and rather erratic loosening of scattered groups of the threads 2a passes fronione line or course of the pile tufts, formed ofthe threads ,2,V into wherein the ends of i following courses and this causes the irregular angular, parallel and intersecting ripple lines.

The formation of the irregular ripple lines is also effected more or less by the fact that the courses of pile tufts when passing around the acute edge 8 are not absolutely parallel with said edge at all times but Waver back and forth across the edge 8 in a slightly irregular line which causes the laid threads 2a to spring upwardly in` scattered groups instead of iny full complete lines running straight across the fabric.

The threads 2 when wet and stuck down to the base of the fabric by the adhesiveness of the liquid by which the threads 2 are wetted causes the laid threads to beunder a certain amount of surface tension and the bending o-f the fabric around the acute edge 8 with the courses of tufts slightly .irregular with respect to the edge 8 breaks this surface tension in spots and releases groups of the threads which spring up into contact with the brush I0.

I f desired, the peripheral surface of the brush l0 may be provided with irregularly or uniformly arranged low spots, deep enough below the high peripheral surface of the brush to miss the threads 2 at all times; and the brush may be arranged with the high surfaces of the brush in constant contact with the laid threads 2. Then, as the brush revolves, the high surfaces ofits periphery will raise some of the threads` 2 while the low spots in the surface of the brush will miss others of the laid threads 2. This form, however, is not preferred as it tends to make the ripples too uniform, whereas the preferred method, previously described, produces no regularity or repeat and adds beauty to the general ripple effect.

The primary tigering or brushing shown in Fig. 3 is normally done with the brush l composed of wire bristles, to produce a combing effect for separating the pile threads one from another and arranging them in substantially parallel relation to each other at the Same time as the pile threads are collectively being laid all in one direction longitudinally of the fabric. However, animal or vegetable fiber bristles may be used if desired.

The secondary brushing in the reverse direction, by the brush Ill as shown in Fig. 4, is preferably accomplished by a brush composed of pig bristles or an equivalent therefor, as a combing eiect is not so essential in this instance, but a wire bristle brush may be used if desired.

I claim:

1. The process of finishing a cut pile face of a textile fabric which includes wetting the threads of which the pile face is composed, laying said wet threads all in one direction over the pile face of the fabric, and bending said fabric at an angle to the normal plane of the fabric to cause groups of the Wet laid threads to loosen and rise from the positions in which they had been previously laid.

2. The process of finishing a cut pile face of a textile fabricwhich includes wetting the threads of which the pile face is composed, layingA said wet threads all in one directionA over the pile face of the fabric, and bending said fabricat an angle to the normal plane of the fabric to cause groups of the wet laid threads to loosen and rise from the positions in which they had been previously laid and simultaneously therewith brushing the rising threads in a direction opposite to that in which said threads had been previously laid.

3. The .process of finishing a cut pile face of a textile fabric which includes wetting the threads of which the pile face is composed, brushing said wet threads all in one direction over the pile face of the fabricto cause said threads tolle substantially flat and parallel to the normal plane of the fabric and tov adhere to the fabric and to each other, and bending said fabric at an angle to the normal plane of the fabric to cause groups of the wet laid threads to loosen and rise from the positions in which they had been previously laid.

4, The process of finishing a cut pile face of a textile fabric which includes wetting the threads `to the normal plane of the fabric to cause groups of the wet laid'threads to loosen and rise from the positions in which they had beenpreviously laid and simultaneously therewith brushing the rising threads in a direction opposite to that in which said threads had been previously laid.

ALFRED WRIGHT. 

